1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to lariats, and in particular to an improved lariat with low-friction honda arm socks.
2. Background of the Invention
Lariats originally evolved as an early cowboy""s most important tool. Cowboys used lariats to catch cattle, to tie horses in place, to pull wagons across rivers and swamps, to kill snakes, etc. A famous quotation from Ramon F. Adams book Western Words states the cowboy xe2x80x9c. . . does everything with his rope except eat with it.xe2x80x9d The word lariat evolved from the Spanish la reata, meaning the rope.
Early cowboys used ropes made of horsehair, grass or henequen. Most lariat ropes today are made of nylon. Typically, cowboy lariats range from 30 to 70 feet in length.
As may be observed in FIG. 1, lariat 2 comprises tail 4 attached to honda 6 at honda knot 7. Honda 6 comprises honda aperture 8 sized to slidably admit tail 4. Tail 4 is disposed within honda aperture 8. That portion of tail 4 which extends from honda knot 7 to honda aperture 8 defines lariat loop 12.
Referring now also to FIG. 2, lariat 2 is operated by sizing lariat loop 12 as appropriate to admit whatever object is to be snared within lariat loop 12. Lariat 2 is then thrown so that lariat loop 12 passes over the object to be snared. The object to be snared could be the neck of a cow, a wagon tongue, etc.
Once the object to be snared is disposed within lariat loop 12, tail 4 is pulled so that tail 4 slides through lariat loop 12 in a direction away from honda 6, as indicated by arrow 10 in FIG. 2, thus diminishing the size of lariat loop 12 in order to close lariat loop 12 around the snared object. Besides their traditional uses as a cowboy tool, lariats currently enjoy widespread popularity in rodeo events. Rodeo means both the sport of exercising the traditional skills required of working cowboys, and the competitive event where such sport is exercised competitively.
Modern rodeos may include bareback bronc riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, calf roping, steer wrestling, team roping, steer roping, and barrel racing. The events which require skillful use of the lariat include calf roping, steer roping, and team roping.
Calf roping requires a contestant to chase a calf while the contestant is riding a horse. The contestant ropes the calf while still riding on his horse, dismounts, throws the calf to the ground and ties three of its legs together. The horse has been trained to keep backing up from the time the calf is roped in order to keep the lariat loop tight around the calf""s neck until the contestant can tie the calf legs together. The contestant who can accomplish these tasks fastest wins. The calf roping event is designed to test both the contestant""s roping skills with the lariat as well as the excellence of teamwork exhibited by the contestant and the contestant""s horse.
Steer roping is one of the most important rodeo events. A contestant on horseback lassoes the steer around the horns from one side of the steer. The contestant, still on horseback, then races around the rear of the steer to its other side, causing the steer to trip over the lariat tail. The contestant then quickly dismounts and ties the steer""s hind legs together. The contestant who can accomplish these tasks fastest wins.
The team roping event involves two contestants working together. The object is for one contestant to rope a steer""s horns, and the other contestant to rope the steer""s hind legs. After each contestant ropes his assigned part of the steer, the contestants pull their lariats tight, such that the tails of the respective lariats form straight lines intersecting at the steer, forming a 90 degree angle relative to each other. When both contestants have their lariats tight at a 90 degree angle relative to each other the event is over. Whichever team accomplishes these tasks fastest wins.
The above events all require close coordination between the contestants and their horses, and the winner is determined based on speed. One aspect of finishing an event promptly is the speed of closure of the lariat loops. The faster the lariat loop closes, the shorter the event time. Thus, it is an important consideration in lariat design to provide for the fastest possible lariat loop closure. Potentially of even more importance, the faster the lariat loop closure, the less the chance that the animal will succeed in shaking off the lariat before the lariat loop has a chance to tighten around the animal. If the animal were to shake off the lariat the contestant would have to start all over, thus incurring a time delay which would probably prove fatal to that contestant""s chances of winning the event.
Existing Designs
Referring now to FIG. 3, a detail view of a prior art honda, currently available lariats 2 incorporate a burner 14 disposed at an extreme of honda 6 opposite honda knot 7. Honda 6 itself comprises honda knot 7, from which honda arms 16 emanate. Burner 14 serves to keep honda 6 and tail 4 from overheating when tail 4 is pulled through honda aperture 8 in order to close lariat loop 12. Burner 14 is made of rawhide or other appropriate material.
In order to speed the closure rate of lariat loop 12, currently available lariats are typically coated with a substance such as wax paraffin, which helps reduce friction between honda 6 and tail 4. In addition, such coatings help stiffen the lariat for more accuracy and ease in handling, help prevent the lariat rope from suffering from sun rot, and thereby help slow rope break-down, and help prevent the rope from fraying.
When closing lariat loop 12, tail 4 rubs against honda arms 16 in currently available lariats 2. Thus, it would be desirable to provide a lariat 2 which minimizes the friction between tail 4 and honda arms 16 when closing lariat loop 12, in order to maximize the closure speed of lariat loop 12.
In accomplishing this objective, it is important to understand that the weight and balance of lariat 2 must not be altered appreciably, particularly in the lariat honda 8 and lariat loop 12 areas. This is crucial because roping events contestants are accustomed to a standard weight and balance, or xe2x80x9cfeelxe2x80x9d, of the lariat. For example, a standard lariat burner 14 weighs around 8 grams, and appreciably changing its weight would change the xe2x80x9cfeelxe2x80x9d of the lariat and hurt a contestant""s score.
Another important consideration to be taken into account when using honda socks to reduce the friction between lariat tail 4 and honda arms 16 is that while sufficiently long honda arm socks should be employed, they should not be any longer than necessary in order to prevent weight build-up. Such increased honda weight is undesirable as explained above, because it could hurt a contestant""s performance. Thus, it is important to optimize the dimensions of any honda arm socks installed.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved lariat with low-friction honda arm socks whose lariat loop closes faster than conventional lariat loops. Design features allowing this object to be accomplished include a honda arm sock on each honda arm adjacent the honda knot. Advantages associated with the accomplishment of this object include faster roping, and reduction of the chance that a roped animal will have time to shake the lariat loop off before it can be tightened.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved lariat with low-friction honda arm socks which does not appreciably change the lariat weight and balance. Design features allowing this object to be accomplished include a low-weight honda arm sock on each honda arm adjacent the honda knot. Benefits associated with the accomplishment of this object include substantial preservation of the original lariat weight and balance, or xe2x80x9cfeelxe2x80x9d, and thus the contestant is provided a faster lariat which xe2x80x9cfeelsxe2x80x9d the same as the original, un-improved lariat.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide an improved lariat with low-friction honda arm socks which does not appreciably change the lariat weight and balance. Design features allowing this object to be accomplished include a low-weight honda arm sock on each honda arm of dimensions optimized to minimize any weight and balance change which may be caused by the honda arm socks. Benefits associated with the accomplishment of this object include substantial preservation of the original lariat weight and balance, or xe2x80x9cfeelxe2x80x9d, and thus providing the contestant a faster lariat which xe2x80x9cfeelsxe2x80x9d the same as the original, un-improved lariat.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved lariat with low-friction honda arm socks with longer-lasting honda arms. Design features allowing this object to be accomplished include a honda arm sock on each honda arm adjacent the honda knot. A benefit associated with the accomplishment of this object is a longer lasting lariat, and the cost savings associated with purchasing less replacement lariats.